October 2010 - Vol. 32. No. 10

Dear Friends

I watched a ladybird scurrying along a window sill. Its little legs were working at a furious pace. Part way along the ledge the ladybird opened its wings, took to the air, executed half a summersault and landed flat on its back. After thrashing about for a while it managed to right itself and set off to climb up the window pane. Whether there was any aim or purpose to all this activity, or if it was part of a daily exercise regime, or just a ladybird’s idea of having fun, I have no way of telling! The ladybird seemed to expend a lot of energy without making much progress. Then I thought about some of the journeys we humans embark upon, and the time and effort we invest in some of our projects, and I wondered how God views these things. The author of Isaiah Chapter 40 might have been pondering similar thoughts when he wrote in verse 22, “It is he (God) who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers.” Whether we are like grasshoppers or ladybirds, these words from the Old Testament express how great and awesome God is and how little we are. We can be so self-centred, acting as though life revolves around us and our concerns. A reminder that this is God’s world helps us to get things into perspective.

Sometimes we set off on journeys or embark on projects which we fail to complete, or we achieve only limited success because we have made our plans without reference to God. Yet God loves us, wants the best for us and has a plan for our lives. In Ephesians Chapter 2 Paul writes of the good works that God has prepared beforehand for us to walk in. However small we are in the vastness of the universe, we are precious to God and we have a unique place in God’s world. If we can learn to listen and to discern God’s will, the effort we put into things is not wasted.

In 1 Corinthians Chapter 3 Paul writes about building on a foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw – and how fire will test what has been built. This is a reference to the Day of Judgment and the image of the building relates to the Church in Corinth. We can also apply it to ourselves and our own Church. Those whose work will be profitable are like those who build with gold, silver and precious stones. Wood, hay and straw will not survive fire. Therefore, those who build with these materials accomplish nothing of lasting value. The foundation is Jesus Christ and all who build their lives on him can claim the promise of eternal life, but some of our work is for this life only. Those things that have eternal value are not the easiest to measure. For instance, if you help another person to come to faith in Jesus Christ, that may be unseen by everyone except God, and yet you are building for eternity.

With my love and prayers

Glynis Hetherington